The world controlled by dice [Western Fantasy]

The location of this village is actually Gainesde.Standing outside the village and looking far away, you can see the gray-black fog hundreds of meters away.

This mist has almost become a part of the life of this village.

Alfonso said that the group of them stopped briefly in this village when they left the fog.At that time, they all breathed a sigh of relief because they escaped from the fog.

However, this kind of mood has caused a moderate conflict in this village, because many people in this village yearn for the mist very much.

"We kept wondering why they didn't go into the mist," Alfonso whispered to Siles, "and then we realized that longing is one thing and life is another. Even in Gai Ernsted, they are also trying to survive.

"...Of course, the longing for the mist is another story. I really can't understand why they yearn for the mist.

"We don't speak the language with them, so we can't communicate with each other. But when they saw us coming out of the fog, they all showed a feeling of awe and envy... It's really incomprehensible."

Fortunately, this village is a rare group in Gainesde that is friendly to humans.Or maybe it was the behavior of Alfonso and his party who came out of the fog and won the respect of this group of people.

In short, Siles and Alfonso easily got a resting place in the village.It was an independent small earthen house with three rooms, which could be used for cooking and cooking, and had an independent bathroom, although it was relatively simple.

You have to fetch water from a nearby well.However, as guests, the people in the village will fetch buckets of water for them in advance, and they have to take the initiative to fetch water after they are used up.

Alfonso said they lived here the last time.The house seems to be the village's exclusive use for entertaining guests.However, the last time they came here, there was no trace of life in this small house, which showed the remoteness and backwardness of this village.

They did not understand the language, so Alfonso could only gesture and say that one of their companions would come tomorrow.The elders of the village—the elders of similar status—showed a half-understanding expression.

Of course, they don't live here for free.Alfonso specially brought jerky, spices, crop seeds and more.For this remote and lonely village, this is already a very rare living item.

Apart from this little house, the village offered no other hospitality.

Siles kept silent all the time, just quietly watching Alfonso communicate with the people in the village.The people in the village showed a friendly attitude towards Alfonso, but they still maintained a little vigilance towards Celes, after all, he was a stranger.

Siles could probably understand what these people were saying.He found that although this group of people lived in isolation and were close to the mist, they still maintained a relatively simple temperament.They were a little curious about the purpose of Siles and Alfonso, but because of the language problem, they could only guess.

From their gossip, Siles finally learned why they still yearned for the mist.

Precisely because of the oasis in the mist.

It seems that someone once emerged from the mist with some items from that oasis.For this poor village, it was already an incredible item, so they couldn't help but have some yearning for the mist.

However, they were unable to pass through the fog and reach the oasis they longed for.Someone may have tried, but failed, so the people here will show awe to Alfonso and the others.

Perhaps this is how the rumor of the desert oasis came about.Siles thought.

There is indeed such an oasis, and there are indeed human beings who come out of the oasis. At the same time, there is indeed such a yearning for the oasis.However, the essence of this oasis is beyond anyone's imagination.

Why isn't the oasis shrouded in fog?

Or maybe it's just because Shadow's body is there.

This thought made Sirius sigh inwardly.

It was already afternoon when they arrived at the village.They rested in the small house for about an hour, mainly lying down for a while on the simple earth kang without even a bed, and then got up and walked around the village.

The people in the village maintained a state of curiosity, awe and alienation towards them, which also allowed Siles and Alfonso to move more freely.

On the whole, this is a small village, and the total population may only be a few hundred people.They came to this place at the turn of the Silent Era and the Mist Era, and temporarily settled down.

No one knew why they chose such a place, so close to the fog; perhaps, when they chose this place, there was no fog here.

Those villagers may not know much about the history of the ethnic group either.They still maintain a relatively primitive standard of living, and occasionally have contact with outsiders.

It is said that merchants come here twice a year.This village will raise some livestock and grow some crops, and merchants will come to buy them.Of course, as time passed, merchants gradually lost interest in it.

When Siles was listening to the chatter of the villagers just now, he noticed that the merchants mentioned by the villagers who were supposed to come here this year have not shown up until now.

Therefore, although the items Alfonso brought this time were not necessary, they did bring some help to the village.That's why the village was willing to let the stranger, Sirius, live here temporarily.

Otherwise, based on Alfonso's shallow friendship with this place, things would not have gone so smoothly.This can also be said to be a very coincidental thing.

Alfonso said that this village may disappear sooner or later, but it is also possible that they will return to human society.

This remote, desolate land of no embers is destined to be the place where human beings will develop.It's just that some people are lucky enough to catch up, while others are completely annihilated before the time comes.

They stood on the edge of the village, gazing at the setting sun.However, the place where the sun sets happens to be the direction shrouded in fog.That made the village face an earlier sunset than usual.

The sky slowly darkened.

Siles and Alfonso also returned to the place where they lived.They exchanged a plan of action for tomorrow.

Qin Duo will join them early tomorrow morning.Alfonso didn't ask how Cendo came here, but simply nodded.So they could set out tomorrow morning for the oasis in the mist.

Although they now have the ritual of "self-reappearance", it is still quite difficult to walk in the fog.Alfonso's expression also became serious.

He took out the time track he used for the "self-representation" ceremony, which was a colorful feather.Alfonso said that this is a unique custom from a country in the west, and he had brief contact with it when he was exploring the Everland when he was young.

It is said that in that country, wearing feather ornaments was a fairly common thing, and people thought it was a kind of amulet.Although Alfonso didn't quite believe it, he did wear such feather ornaments once.

That period of time was obviously his high-spirited age, and this thing was related to his profession, so Alfonso chose this feather.As long as you wear it on your chest, you can see it when you look down. This is obviously a very convenient ritual.

Alfonso asked, "Professor, what is your schedule?"

Siles didn't actually need the ritual of "self-reincarnation", but he also considered the occurrence of this situation, so he took out a pen from his pocket and said, "This is the pen I use when I write novels." pen."

Alfonso stared at the pen, and after a while, he said, "Do you have any other time slots that are more... more convenient? In the fog, if you need to write all the time, it seems a bit troublesome."

Siles suddenly realized.

Like Alfonso, a certain accessory worn on the body, or other time rails that can continue to take effect without specific actions, are the best choices for explorers walking in the land of no embers.

For a person like Siles who doesn't often come to the Land of Embers, the time he chooses is also incompatible with the style of the Land of Embers.

Siles thought for a while, and said, "A pair of glasses? I often use them to read and read newspapers. But at Cindo's place, he will bring them tomorrow."

He was referring to [Akamala's Spectacle Frame], of course.

Alfonso's statement also just gave him an inspiration. He can use the ritual of "returning himself" to cover the ritual of [Akamala's Spectacle Frame], lest people wonder why he wears it in the mist Glasses.

"Of course." Alfonso said, showing a thoughtful expression, "I suddenly realized that what you did was actually right, maybe I should prepare an extra time track for myself, or even several Time track, so as not to have any accidents."

For their actions to go to the mist like they do now, the ritual of "returning themselves" and abundant potions are all indispensable.However, it is inevitable to encounter some accidents on the road. If the time track used to "reappear oneself" is dropped or lost, it will be troublesome.

Siles nodded in agreement, and said, "It's better to be an item of the same stage."

Alfonso thought for a while, and then couldn't help saying: "Professor, I think this ritual may change the ideas of explorers to a large extent. Do you think it is possible to use different rituals on the same time track in the future?" ?”

Same time track, different rituals?

Siles conceived of a possibility: "For example, the usual offensive weapon, but also the time track used to 're-embody'?"

"Yes, something like this." Alfonso said, "because I suddenly realized that this seems to be a very interesting direction. The ritual of 'reappearing oneself' is an auxiliary ritual and can be combined with other rituals. coexist."

After thinking for a while, he couldn't help sighing and said: "This is really a very interesting subject."

"I think this is more of a practical value. For some explorers, they can avoid the situation of carrying many time rails with them." Siles evaluated objectively.

Alfonso nodded in agreement, and he was lost in thought, as if he was considering any changes to his time track system.

……system.Siles suddenly realized thoughtfully.

The power of the Revelator always feels quite complex and messy, because the rituals used by everyone may be different.

When a revelator steps into this path, he may be exposed to many concepts, such as potions, timing, rituals, purity, integrity, fit, sealed items, spiritual pollution, and so on.

These seem to define the power of the Revelator in a way; but when you look deeper, you will realize that there are still quite confusing parts of these concepts.

The strength itself appears to vary from person to person.Even if people are able to construct a system—a time track system or a ritual system—it is limited to themselves, and it is difficult to apply to the general public.

Maybe in the future, there will be a dedicated time track company?They provide as consistent timing and rituals as possible to make people look a little bit more uniform.

But in the final analysis, things like rituals are quite casual.Children may ask adults to wave the fruit knife casually, so this fruit knife becomes a powerful weapon in the eyes of children.The influence of human power on ritual is very direct and pervasive.

... After all, it is a chaotic, disorganized force.

Siles and Alfonso were lost in thought.

The sweltering heat of the night quickly brought Alfonso back to his senses. He shook his head, wiped the sweat off his face, and said, "It's really too hot."

Siles was a little better than him, but also felt a little bored.He thought for a moment, and suddenly thought that he seemed to be carrying the product of the subject in his backpack—the metal blade.

Regarding the use of [Flowing Wind] as a way to combat heat or cold, Grenfell provided two solutions at that time, one was metal blades, and the other was leaf-shaped bottles.

The former is more convenient to carry around, and some of them have already been produced, so when Siles went out this time, he took a few with him just in case.

In the past period of time, they went north to Middleton and the Sea of ​​Folio. The weather there was not as hot as this side, so Siles didn't use those metal blades, but now it seems to be a good time.

He mentioned it to Alfonso.Alfonso was amazed at the whimsy of this subject, and opened a bottle of potion without hesitation.

This time they set off, they naturally brought a lot of potions, and it is not unacceptable to use a little potion with a lower purity here.The main reason was that Alfonso was getting a little restless from the heat.

Siles dropped a metal blade into the potion bottle.Soon, bursts of cold air began to emit from the mouth of the potion bottle.Alfonso stared blankly at the potion bottle for a while, then sighed, "An invention that crossed the ages."

Siles laughed inwardly.

Soon, Alfonso felt better and went to wash.Siles still sat for a while, looking at the potion bottle, and absently continued to think about the previous thought-the power of the revelator varies from person to person.

But at this moment, when he was staring at the potion bottle and thinking about the word "varies from person to person", he suddenly had a strange association.

What he meant was... one of the necessary ingredients for making potions is star dust.

Stardust is the fallen bones of the Old Gods.In the file provided by the Church of the Past, Sirius saw the burial sites of the star dust of different old gods, which was also the place where the old gods fell.

Now, a question that puzzles Sirius is, since the star dust belongs to different old gods, why is the potion applicable to all rituals?This is not the same as saying that the power of the revelator "differs from person to person".

Could it be that Stardust is not "differing from god"?

Siles frowned, and could not help thinking carefully about the information about the potion.

He has Grenfell, a potion master, as his teacher. Although he has never made potions himself, he has also heard a lot of related information.

In his memory, potions were also divided into different types.

Some unique ceremonies do require certain unique potions, but that's not the difference between the star dust, but the difference in the main ingredients.Some potions can be quite complicated to craft, requiring very special materials.

But the frequency of use of this potion is not very high.Few revelators need to use such potions, and such potions are rarely circulated in the market, and usually some revelators specially order them from potion masters.

Potions circulating in the market are usually called finished potions.The production method of this potion has been fixed, and it can even be brewed in a fairly streamlined mode.In addition, finished potions are also suitable for most known rituals.

... Yes, that's the crux of the matter.

When people brewed potions, they didn't know which Old God the stardust in their hands belonged to - in fact, they didn't even know that the stardust was the bones of the Old Gods at all.

However, the star dust of different old gods can finally form a unified, common finished potion suitable for most rituals. This problem is already surprising.

... Perhaps it can be said that the ashes burned after human death are all ashes after all, and the bones of the old gods are of course just their corpses.But... the corpse of the old god contains power.

Why do Stardust of different Old Gods end up with the same potion effect?

This question made Sirius feel an unspeakable chill.He simply got up and stood by the window, habitually doing this to calm himself down.He stared at the scene outside the window—the gray-black mist in the dark night.

This situation does not seem incomprehensible if one considers the existence of the "Father of the Old Gods".

The father of the old gods is certainly not a biological father.Considering the definition of the blood descendant of the old god, then the "father" of the old god is probably the source of the old god's power.

In other words, the power of the old gods all come from the same source.

From this perspective, the Stardust of the Old Gods also shows the consistency of "same origin", which is also very reasonable.

But the problem is...

The problem is, this is the power of the Revelator, which is the category of Anti-Nam's power.

Why can Anti-Nam's power show the essential "consistency" of the power of the old gods in a way that is almost traceable?

Why, the power of Anti-Nam can reproduce the power of the old god?

An almost unbelievable idea appeared in Sirius' mind, but he felt very unbelievable.

He began to look for various possibilities, trying to overthrow this statement.

Antinam's godhead is the past and history.And the old gods are obviously included in the past history of Fischer's world.From this perspective, they are also indirectly included in Anti-Nam's power.

This is a problem of definition, because Antinam's godhead is quite a "false" thing.

The godheads of other old gods, such as death, such as dreams, are all "concepts" that have tangible points.And Antinam's power is the past, "a period of time", which encompasses everything.

... Yet this question is actually something that Cileus, and many other revelators, find strange.

Why does the power of Anti-Nam have different conceptual meanings from the power of other old gods?

past, past.Siles murmured the word silently in his mind.He thought, what's the past?

——The past of Fisher's world.

He realized that speculation about Anti-Nam's power seemed to make him doubt Anti-Nam's nature even more.

Without hesitation, he shifted his thoughts to other places.

He began to think about some more practical things, such as the birth of Antinam.

Antinam was born at the turn of the Silent Era and the Mist Era.It is difficult to say the exact time, after all, the birth of gods is a closely guarded topic, but it should be before the period of fog, the late period of silence.

After all, in the early period of the Mist, when the Principality of Const fell into war, Mr. Xia was already considered to be the first enlightener to use the power of Anti-Nam, and he was considered to be the representative of Anti-Nam By.

From this point of view, Anti-Num must have been born before the Mist Age.

As for the place of birth, according to what Bishop Grosvenor said before, it was Merlin Town in Lamifah City.

…At that time, Grosvenor also said that a man named Noel helped Antinam, who was just born at that time, so the church in the past had been secretly taking care of the Noel family.

However, when re-examining this piece of information now, Siles couldn't help feeling a little suspicious.

"Sileus Noel" is a created identity.Neither his father nor his mother existed.His mother was even played by the god himself.

So, is there really such a man named Noel who helped Antinam when he was just born?Isn't this what Antinam deliberately said?

This approach seemed to be that Anti-Nam made an excuse so that He Jiayin, who had just come to this world, had a reliable backing.His purpose is to let Sirius get help from the church in the past.

As for the reason for the help?

Anyway, the people in the church in the past were all believers in Antinam, and believers would naturally trust the words of the gods.No one would doubt Antinam's statement, no one would think about, or verify, whether such a human being who helped the gods really existed.

...Therefore, the birth of Antinam was also shrouded in a hazy veil because of this delicate story that was hard to distinguish between true and false.

Was Anti-Nam really born at the turn of the Age of Fog and the Age of Silence?

Siles thought of a confusion that had arisen earlier.

He used to be troubled by why Anti-Nam would know the blood descendants of the old gods of the Praia family; why Anti-Nam would keep Akamala's token, that is, [Akamala's Spectacle Frame].

After all, Lygardia had already embarked on a journey during the Shadow Era, and Akamala's fall was also in the middle of the Silence Era.That doesn't match the birth time of Anti-Nam.

Before that, whenever Siles thought about this problem, he would naturally attribute the problem to Anti-Nam's strength.

Antinam's power is the past and history, so he should know what happened in the past, shouldn't he?

Even if this reason can't convince Sirius, there is another reason for him to ignore this issue—maybe Antinam is the backhand left by the old gods.

However, once you combine the term "father of the old gods", the subtle functions of Star Dust, and the inexplicable goodwill of Antinam and Dice towards this world and human civilization...

That seemingly unbelievable idea finally surfaced in Sirius' mind.

He thought, Antinam, could he be the "father of the old gods"?

... He had to admit that when this idea really appeared, he felt a bit of irony.

He meant that Antinam, the "mother" of Siles Noel, was also the "father" of the old gods?

Well, he thought of the Kellan family's odd habits, though the association was only to make himself feel better.

He suddenly realized that when he gradually received all kinds of information that went deep into the core of the world, he should actually think about the accuracy of the information he had obtained in the past, or in other words, refresh his cognition.

Many things, when he is ignorant and ignorant, present one appearance; but when he is mature and experienced, they will present another appearance.That's how things are.

... Siles stared at the night outside the window.The potion bottle still blows out a steady stream of air-conditioning, alleviating the heat of the summer night.However, there was another feeling of excitement and chill in Siles' heart.

He wasn't sure if his guess was correct.

Antinam and the "father of the old gods"?

That sounds like the existence of completely two eras.

"Father of the Old Gods" appeared at the beginning of the world, a god older than Lygardia and Akamala, and that was the source of power for the thirteen old gods.

And Antinam?

An existence that was born hundreds of years ago and was even doubted by humans as being qualified to be called a god.

They feel completely different, and there are even so many epochs in between—the Birth of the Gods, the Faith Era, the Empire Era, the Shadow Era, and the Silence Era—such a long time!

But they may be the same existence.

Siles felt dazed for a moment.When he fully understood the meaning of the words on the stone tablet on the isolated island, this feeling once dominated his brain, but now, this feeling has deepened further.

When he thought that the "father" whose bones were gnawed by Temiafa was just a strange god that he didn't know, he would feel a calm and shallow sigh.He sighed for an ancient god lost in time.

However, if this god is precisely his familiar and even close "mother", a companion who saved the world together in the distant past, then this sigh becomes deeper and sadder, and even stranger.

After all, he couldn't help but feel puzzled, what on earth had caused such an antagonism?In that distant and long past, what happened to these gods?

"...Professor?" Alfonso's hesitant voice sounded.

Siles came back to his senses and looked sideways at Alfonso.

Alfonso said: "You can go to wash up. Rest early, we will embark on a journey tomorrow."

Siles was silent for a moment, unable to get away from those thoughts about the old gods immediately.It was a moment before he responded: "I see. Good night, Alfonso."

"Good night, professor." Alfonso observed his expression, "You seem to be worried. However, we are just making an attempt. If nothing comes out of the investigation, then we will return to Ramifa City and continue to spend ordinary days. That's all. Don't stress too much."

Siles nodded, thanking his old friend for his relief, although it was impossible for Alfonso to think what he was thinking.

"I will," he said simply, "thank you."

Alfonso waved at him, then asked Sirius if he needed the potion bottle.He seemed to need the cold air, so Sirius let him take it to his room.

Siles washed up absently, and lay down on the bed, tossing and turning sleeplessly.As the night deepened, he told himself that there were still many things to do tomorrow - no matter how anxious he was, he still needed to think about how to meet Anti-Nam.

By that time, everything will be revealed.

So he calmed down slowly, and soon fell into a deep sleep.When he woke up the next morning, he felt like he had just woken up from a dream.

He sat in a daze for a while on the simple kang, and even began to doubt whether he had really thought of that terrible guess.

Someone knocked on his door.Siles came back to his senses and said "Come in".

It's Qindo.He has arrived.

When Cendo entered the room, he noticed that Sirius' expression was not right.He hesitated and asked, "Good morning. What's the matter with you?"

"I thought of some complicated problems." Siles pinched the bridge of his nose, and said, "I'll go wash up first."

"Okay," Cinder said, looking a little curious as to what Sirius was thinking.

After Siles finished washing, Qin Duo leaned over, hugged him very contentedly, and begged for a kiss for himself.

For his partner who had been separated for many days, Siles also felt very missing, but he usually did not reveal his emotions bluntly, but only extended the time of this kiss a little bit.He kissed Gyndo tenderly.

After the kiss, Qindo babbled about how much he missed Celes, and how happy he was to actually be able to get in touch with Celes now.After that, he handed over the things he brought to Siles.

Including the number one figure and glasses frame, and he also brought some very delicious food, such as Middleton's fish cakes.Of course, he can only carry it with him, so not many, but it also made Siles feel a lot easier after a day of running around yesterday.

"Where's Alfonso?" Siles asked Cendo when he realized that he hadn't seen Alfonso after getting up in the morning.

"He is trying to communicate with the elders of this village." Qindo replied, "When I came, I went to a nearby place where no one was around, and then walked over. The people in this village were very panicked by my arrival ...uh, they seem to know me?"

Ginto pondered for a moment in bewilderment.

Siles was taken aback for a moment, then he suppressed a smile and said, "Perhaps, they heard about your reputation from other villages in Gainesd."

Of course, Cindo Playa's reputation as an explorer.

According to Siles' understanding of Chindor's career as an explorer, Qindor has indeed been involved with many villages and aboriginal tribes in Gainesde, although Qinduo basically used force to deter those tribes.

Therefore, the small village where they are now may really know some of Qinduo's past... Maybe, in those rumors, Qinduo has been described as a very scary person.

Qin Duo was startled, and he muttered, "Oh, I almost forgot, there is indeed such a possibility."

Celes smiled.

Cindo said: "That's why they allowed me to enter the village. It took me a while to make them realize that I was Alfonso's companion. But there was an older man who seemed to mean to let Alfonso confirmed my identity.

"So I waited there for a while, and when Alfonso woke up to confirm the matter, I came to you. But Alfonso still stayed there, and he planned to try his best to exchange some information with the villagers, even though I didn't know Very optimistic about this."

After all, they don't speak the language.Cendo meant this.

Siles thought for a while, and said, "Actually, I can communicate with them. But the problem is, I can't communicate with them as myself."

"Doll?" Qin Duo asked, but he quickly shook his head again, "Unfortunately, the doll can't speak."

Siles' eyes fell on the No. [-] and No. [-] dolls, and he couldn't help but sighed regretfully.

Indeed, the doll cannot speak.Since he can't speak, it is also a good choice for Siles to keep silent, listen to other people's conversations, and collect information secretly.

It was thought that he could not understand his own language, which might inadvertently give away secret information.

Thinking this way, after breakfast, Siles and Cindo went to find Alfonso.

Before going out, considering that he was going to leave in a while, Siles simply swallowed the potion, and wore the [Akamala's Spectacle Frame] and the [Silent Heart] brooch.

He looked at the fog not far away, and couldn't help squinting his eyes.

Through the vision of the glasses, he could see empty lands in the mist, and farther away, the vast presence of something... something that seemed to draw his thoughts to it.

He restrained himself cautiously.He knew that it might be the grave bag, but now he didn't intend to face the dead body of "Shadow" in the past.

...at least not until he knew the place well enough to be sure.

He took off his glasses casually.

Qin Duo glanced at him, seemed to want to say something, but was a little hesitant.

"What's wrong?" Sirius noticed his expression.

"It just occurred to me that this time track is really powerful, and it can directly see through the situation in the fog." Qin Duo said with admiration, "Even things directly related to Akamala."

Siles also nodded, and he said, "I'm afraid Antinam specially..."

He paused suddenly, then frowned slightly.

What he wanted to say was that Antinam probably asked the Church of the Past to give this thing to him.

This is probably the case in fact.Antinam probably knew that he had come into contact with Akamala's power, and at the same time he would eventually go to the Land of Eternity to face the fog, so he took the opportunity of Sirius to help find the apostate Hamlin, and sent Give this to Sirius.

This is obviously Antinam's intention to help him.

However, from another perspective, he suddenly realized some problems that he had overlooked before through Qin Duo's words.

[Akamala's spectacle frame], the focus is on "Akamala's".In other words, this is the spectacle frame used by Akamala.

...gods need glasses?Siles was somewhat skeptical.

He thought, maybe it was a stage prop used by Akamala when he was playing a puppet on the stage?This seems much more reasonable.

Regardless, the glasses are clearly related to Akamala's powers.

Akamala's power is "illusion", and the ritual effect of this pair of glasses is to see through reality and illusion, so that he can see through the fog.

Siles played with the glasses thoughtfully.From the outside, the glasses are unremarkable, just the usual pince-nez.But in terms of its essence, this is indeed the most precious thing on Sirius.

Akamala's glasses, Akamala's power...

Siles suddenly thought, why can't he use this pair of glasses in the dream?

Since this symbolizes Akamala's glasses, of course in Akama